The software at the center of Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan schools’ new way of teaching reading to elementary school students was developed by an educator now on the district’s payroll.

Beth Swenson, a lead literacy teacher in the district, developed North Star Education Tools over a career of helping struggling students get back on track. The program is key to the “response to intervention” teaching method Swenson champions, one with the premise that with the proper data teachers can help even the most challenged students become successful.

“I believe it is an amazing tool that will be part of the future of education,” Swenson said.

Rosemount will pay $77,610 this school year to use North Star software to store and analyze literacy data of more than 13,000 students. It is part of a district-wide overhaul of literacy instruction that aims to reduce the need for tutoring and referrals for special education.

Steve Troen, director of teaching and learning for the district, said a committee examined other options, but Swenson’s North Star tool was the most detailed software available. “It was unanimous; North Star by far best met our needs,” Troen said.

Troen and Swenson both said they didn’t believe Swenson’s role in developing the tool or her position as director of training with the company was a conflict of interest. North Star is listed as a limited liability company with the Minnesota Secretary of State, but Swenson said she is in the process of converting the business to a nonprofit company.

“Everything gets invested back into the tool,” Swenson said. “It’s like a cooperative. I want the needs of teachers and students to drive it.”

North Star Education Tools was born from a unique partnership. Swenson long has used her intervention model with students, but as she worked to help other teachers use the method, they needed a user-friendly way to store and chart the student achievement data they collected.

In 2006, while working in Brainerd schools, Swenson began developing the software system with the help of state and federal grants. The district and Swenson worked as partners with plans of providing training and software to other school districts, said Steve Razidlo, superintendent of Brainerd schools.

“It is a curious thing for a district to say: ‘We want to be leaders and develop tools for our teachers,'” Razidlo said, acknowledging few schools develop their own software.

Fees from training helped offset the $200,000 the district invested in the software, he said.

In 2011, Brainerd school board members voted to dissolve the partnership they had with North Star Education Tools. The agreement allowed Swenson to continue to develop the software and gave Brainerd free use of the system.

“It was very hard for us to be in the software development business and the teacher training business and still maintain our strength as a district,” Razidlo said. “Our interests are better served by using the tool rather than further development of it.”

Swenson continues to work on her software system but insists North Star will remain separate from the Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan school district. She acknowledges her role as an employee who also provides services to her district is “unique.”

But it’s the best way to ensure the software meets the district’s needs. “Unless you are working inside the system, you have no business telling people how to run things,” she said.

Swenson led training sessions for about 1,000 district teachers and administrators over the summer. One session was attended by Brenda Cassellius, the state education commissioner, who applauded the district’s new approach and said it aligned with the state’s “Reading Well by Third Grade” initiative.

Students from kindergarten through fifth-grade across the district were assessed before the start of school to give teachers data about their literacy skills. Teachers entered that data into the North Star tool and will use it throughout the year to modify instruction to help struggling students.

Troen said the district is lucky to have Swenson working with them as they remake the district’s literacy curriculum. “Beth is very knowledgeable and a national expert,” he said. “We benefit from her expertise. It is not just about the software. It’s about the overall approach.”

Both the instructional approach and the software tool that manages the data will continue to evolve, Swenson said.

“I don’t think I can continue to grow the tool unless I live it day to day,” she said. “It’s being designed by teachers for teachers and for children based on their needs.”

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